The Charter concept is this: a single phone number is made available to authorized parties providing 24/7 contact to a person who can activate the charter. Once activated, a project manager takes charge. The project manager knows what satellite resources are available, how to task them to collect data, and how to quickly analyze the collected data to create impact maps for first responders. These maps, provided to responders for free, often show where the damage is and where crisis victims are, allowing responders to plan and execute relief support.
You can think of the Charter as a one-stop-shop for impact maps—an essential resource, since in many cases satellite data are the only practical method to assess current ground conditions after a disaster.
This month, 26 Landsat scenes were ingested by the USGS Hazard Data Distribution System to provide data for the following Charter activation(s):
+ Flood and Landslide in India
+ Flood in Chile
+ Fire in Chile
+ Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu
+ Villarrica Volcano in Chile
+ Flood in Bolivia
+ Oil Spill in Viet Nam
+ Turrialba Volcano in Costa Rica
Details from the USGS Hazard Data Distribution System’s RSS feed:
On 2015-03-31 09:39:16, 4 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201503_Flood_IND
On 2015-03-31 05:25:06, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Oilspill_VNM
On 2015-03-31 05:22:17, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Cyclone_Pam_VUT
On 2015-03-30 05:52:49, 1 LANDSAT-7 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Oilspill_VNM
On 2015-03-27 10:21:21, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Volcano_Villarrica_CHL
On 2015-03-27 10:01:26, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201502_Flood_Bolivia
On 2015-03-27 09:50:41, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Cyclone_Pam_VUT
On 2015-03-27 09:39:44, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Volcano_Turrialba_CRI
On 2015-03-27 09:37:09, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201503_Flood_CHL
On 2015-03-26 09:25:51, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201503_Flood_CHL
On 2015-03-26 05:48:06, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Volcano_Villarrica_CHL
On 2015-03-26 05:44:17, 1 LANDSAT-7 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Volcano_Villarrica_CHL
On 2015-03-26 05:40:45, 1 LANDSAT-7 scene was ingested for event: 201503_Fire_CHL
On 2015-03-26 05:36:05, 3 LANDSAT-7 scenes were ingested for event: 201503_Cyclone_Pam_VUT
On 2015-03-25 06:15:56, 4 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201503_Cyclone_Pam_VUT
Landsat data provided for non-charter activations:
On 2015-03-31 05:15:39, 1 LANDSAT-7 scene was ingested for event: 201502_Storm_GA
On 2015-03-30 06:10:34, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-30 06:10:34, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-30 05:49:21, 2 LANDSAT-7 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-30 05:49:21, 2 LANDSAT-7 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-30 05:47:07, 1 LANDSAT-7 scene was ingested for event: 201501_Volcano_Soputan_IDN
On 2015-03-27 09:55:36, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201501_Volcano_Soputan_IDN
On 2015-03-27 09:42:11, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-27 09:42:11, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-26 05:49:58, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201311_Volcano_Indonesia
On 2015-03-25 06:48:56, 1 LANDSAT-8 scene was ingested for event: 201501_Volcano_Soputan_IDN
On 2015-03-25 06:19:06, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-25 06:19:06, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-23 06:39:40, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-23 06:14:19, 2 LANDSAT-7 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-11 05:01:04, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-06 04:38:31, 2 LANDSAT-8 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
On 2015-03-04 05:45:26, 2 LANDSAT-7 scenes were ingested for event: 201409_Volcano_Kilauea_HI
Further Reading:
+ Mapping Disaster: A Global Community Helps from Space
Scenes from the Polar Night
April 2, 2024
Landsat satellites have begun regularly acquiring images of ice at the poles during the winter, with enlightening results.
